Czar Putin?

     You think our country is mishandled? Well take a look at Russia. Take a look at their president, Vladimir Putin, or should I say Czar Putin? Czars, if you don't know were Russian emperors in the mid 1900's. Their imperial ruling wasn't exactly fair and they treated peasants very terribly. Many Russians and even Americans are beginning to point fingers at Putin.

Many people have very different biased opinions on the way Putin runs Russia. But Putin tries to change that image, for example, "He cultivates this macho image by posing with tigers, showing off his judo schools, and riding horses shirtless.", according to The New York Times Upfront article "Czar Putin?" by Patricia Smith. Does this appeal to you? Does this distract from the fact that as a Russian your economy is falling apart? Well Putin decided it was a good idea to start a war and kill thousands of people in Ukraine because of a piece of land he think deserves to be part of Russia. Now other countries aren't purchasing oil from Russia, causing their oil prices to fall. How does a war sound now Putin? Russia was only happy to have someone other than Czars, but now I believe their opinions are going to quickly change. I believe the author is trying to say that the Russians just haven't put the two puzzle pieces together-Putin isn't any different from these Czars, and other countries have obviously already realized this because they have cut off their money supply. However, "In 2008 presidential terms were extended from four to six years." .This meaning that now, Putin's sixth's term expires in 2018. Will Russia be able to stay strong or will they fall apart even more than they already are?

This article has made me think about how present day leaders from ancient countries, like Russia, haven't changed their strategy of ruling at all, which isn't necessarily a good thing as you can see. Our world needs a change in leadership, though our past was eventful and some decisions made were life changing, we need a fresh plan. Putin's lack of change supports exactly why we need a fresh start.